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Sometimes it takes a life-changing event to shake you to your very core and remind you what really matters.

For the countless people who are suffering in ways that defy comprehension following the stunning events at Virginia Tech, that lesson came in the toughest form possible.

While I&#39;m fortunate that I don&#39;t have to mourn the loss of any personal friends or family, I sincerely feel the pain of those who do.

As DA Sports Editor Tim Tassa eloquently said in his Tuesday column, such tragedies "make sports seem so petty, so irrelevant."

It&#39;s cliche to say so, but it&#39;s true. I know that by noon on Monday, I cared a lot less about how my Boston Red Sox would fare in their Patriots Day game against the Angels than I had when I woke up.

In the wake of the campus shooting, the Hokies called off the remainder of their spring football drills and canceled all sporting events scheduled for the following days.

These moves were in the best interest of all involved. At that point, no one needed the distraction of competition when the hearts and minds of all of those at VT were elsewhere.

After all, athletes and coaches deserve the chance to grieve too.

However, the moratorium on athletics at Virginia Tech ends today, when the school&#39;s baseball squad hosts Miami.

To most, this event will mean little in light of the heartache the community has suffered. After all, college baseball games go on every day nationwide at this time of year.

But in this case, the ping of the aluminum bat and the unmistakable snap of a solid fastball against a catcher&#39;s mitt will be the first sound of life beginning to return to normal in Blacksburg.

While it&#39;s true that tragedy makes us realize how meaningless the wins and losses of our teams really are, it&#39;s every bit as true that athletics are a significant part of our lives.

Sporting events are more than just a good excuse for people to get together and drink a few beers while debating the merits of blitzing off the edge on third and long.

No, in times like this, we&#39;re reminded that sports are so important to us because they&#39;re a sure sign of normal life in abnormal times.

It&#39;s that importance that made renditions of "The Star-Spangled Banner" and "God Bless America" take on such added meaning at baseball games following the attacks of 9/11.

And it&#39;s the sense of unity and togetherness that sports foster that led the thousands of mourners at Virginia Tech&#39;s memorial convocation Tuesday to ditch button-down shirts and dress slacks in favor of their favorite maroon and orange Hokie T-shirt.

When those in attendance at that same service struggled to express themselves beyond their tears, they went back to the same cheers that echo through Lane Stadium on any given Saturday in the fall.

The mourners&#39; chants of "Let&#39;s go, Hokies" reverberated through Cassell Coliseum, punctuated with the rhythmic clapping and repetition that is typically better suited to sporting events than soul-searching.

But in that moment, for those who gathered to find a sense of community when pain seemed poised to take over their lives, those three simple words took on all the meaning of a chorus of "Amazing Grace."

Instead of rallying their athletic heroes to another victory, the Virginia Tech faithful were chanting to rally their own flagging spirits.

It&#39;s easy for us to make sports trivial in the wake of traumatic events, because tragedy always makes us step back and evaluate our priorities in life.

But for the thousands of VT students who are longing for some sense of "normal," today&#39;s first pitch is the first small step back toward simpler times in Blacksburg.

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Every year there are one or two tragedies of monumental proportion that unite people and draw to mind that there is more to life than a rivalry, a goal post, a field and a coach.

And, unfortunately, April 16, when at least 32 people at Virginia Tech were killed by a deranged gunman, was one of those days. It marked the beginning of a time to reach out to the Virginia Tech community, for so many at West Virginia University - through geography, friends and family - are connected to the institution.

The day after the deadliest shooting on a college campus in United States history brings nothing but disbelief, outrage, curiosity and grief.

As we often do during times of bewilderment and mourning, we ask, "Why do bad things happen to good people?"

And still, there is no answer.

As a University that is familiar with Virginia Tech, whether on the playing field, academically or socially, it is only human to keep southwest Virginia in our thoughts just a day after such a disaster.

But the effects are much more widespread.

After the images displayed on network television, Monday&#39;s violence will be remembered just as the Kent State, University of Texas and Columbine shootings - except at an even larger level.

In addition, the events may be a catalyst for change in the way higher education is conducted nationwide. Or at least in security procedures.

For those of us sitting in large lecture halls and residing in campus dormitories, the anxiety and horror of what happened in Blacksburg, Va., doesn&#39;t seem very far.

The realization is that tragedies of this magnitude can happen on any campus, big or small. For current WVU students, sitting in class today will feel much different than it did last Tuesday.

In speaking with a few VT students on Monday, the realities of the events had yet to hit them.

By day&#39;s end it surely had.

It was certainly felt by VT&#39;s most familiar face.

"How could one person cause so many senseless deaths? I&#39;m in shock," said head football coach Frank Beamer, according to espn.com. "This is such a caring, friendly place. This is a college town. And now one person has an impact like this?"

But on a day, and by a person whose words are normally revered, his thoughts were no more telling than the voices and words of the students who called in on CNN to tell their stories.

In watching the cable network, a Virginia Tech student, Matt Waldron, was interviewed and spoke of his interactions with well-wishers and friends.

Among them: a U.S. Soldier in Iraq who ironically faces similar dangers daily.

And in watching Monday&#39;s death toll grow from 22 to 25 to 30 to 32, I wondered why the deaths in Iraq do not collect the same disbelief, outrage, curiosity and grief.

But as violence in war is unfortunately expected, bloodshed in the classroom is unimaginable.

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Sports can help ease pain at VT

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By: Matt Sohn
Posted: 4/20/07
Nobody&#39;s quite sure what to expect when the Miami University football players don the Red and White for Friday&#39;s annual spring scrimmage. On the one hand, injuries have continued to decimate a team still smarting from its 2-10 campaign of 2006, but on the other hand, the RedHawks return the core of the fastest team in the MAC.

The question of whether they&#39;re reeling or ready will soon be answered.

No such questions exist for the football team of Virginia Tech. Led by one of the nation&#39;s elite defenses, the Hokies stand as the overwhelming favorite to win the ACC next season.

Thousands of fans were expected to pack Lane Stadium for Saturday&#39;s spring game in anticipation of a banner season in Blacksburg, Va. But, because of a cascade of bullets that ripped through the heart of the Hokie nation, no such game will be played.

Shouts of "Hokie Hokie Hokie High!" have been replaced by the tearful hysteria of a campus coming to grips with the fact that their lives will never be the same.

When looking back at my college career, the one constant I could always count on was change. Midway through my first year, I was assigned a new roommate. I&#39;ve switched my major. I&#39;ve fallen in love and have had my heart broken. I&#39;ve been praised for my writing and have received hate mail.

Nowhere has the concept of change been more pervasive than in the world of sports.

As a wide-eyed first-year in 2002, I was among the tens of thousands in the Yager Stadium bleachers as Miami was just a few minutes shy of toppling an Iowa team that would go undefeated in Big Ten play. Two years ago, I was one of just a couple hundred to witness Bowling Green pound the RedHawks in a 42-14 romp in tornado-like conditions. I&#39;ve seen the North Dakota hockey team shut Miami out in the opening game of 2005, only to watch Miami climb to No. 1 in the polls later that season. There was the nostalgic farewell to Goggin, the groundbreaking of the Steve Cady Arena and hard times on the hardwood followed by Doug Penno&#39;s heroism.

In sports and in life, hope springs eternal.

So what do you say to a Virginia Tech community whose indelible image of college is that of their classmates, friends, professors and lovers senselessly slaughtered? How does a mother cope with seeing her son&#39;s farewell to Blacksburg be in a body bag instead of on a graduation podium? The sad truth is that for the grieving Hokie family, there&#39;s no salve for their wound.

Even with all the advancements in medical science, there&#39;s no painkiller for this kind of hurt - no stadium construction, buzzer-beater or championship ring that will ever change the reality of those dealing with premature death.

What these men and women can do is remind themselves that to make the most of every moment as the universal healing power of time runs its course.

A similar lesson applies to everyone, everywhere. For those of us biding our final days in Oxford, let&#39;s not bemoan our imminent departure, but rather celebrate our journey. For those continuing your collegiate experience, make plans for making the most of your time here.

And this is where the beauty of sport lies for everybody. For the majority of us, our life&#39;s course won&#39;t be affected by athletics. It won&#39;t give us a raise or get us fired, won&#39;t find us happiness or despair in romance, nor will it ease the agony from the families of Virginia Tech and others coping with tragedy.

What it can do, however, is provide us with a needed respite from the constant grind of life. When the Hokie football team storms the field Sept. 1 for its season-opening clash with Eastern Carolina, nobody will forget the massacre that afflicted their campus months earlier. But, for a three-hour stretch on a Saturday afternoon, they can turn their attention away from grief, schoolwork and jobs, and onto the raucous adulation that transpires on the field.

As Tom Cochran&#39;s song reminds us, "Life is a highway," and as sports remind us, there are many rest stops along the way.

In the wake of yesterday&#39;s tragedy at Virginia Tech, online sports message boards served a more important purpose, providing an outlet for people to report information about the shootings that killed 33 people.

With cell phone coverage limited yesterday in the Blacksburg area, many turned to sports message boards to communicate news reports as well as personal reactions to the day&#39;s events. In fact, the two largest message boards for Virginia and Virginia Tech sports -- Thesabre.com and Techsideline.com -- have become completely devoted to discussion of the shootings.

Sabre administrators posted a message on the Tech site to inform users that the message boards could help facilitate dialogue and updates about the shootings.

"We at The Sabre understand that you may have periodic problems accessing the TSL and VT Web sites," the message stated. "When this happens, you are welcome to use TheSabre.com&#39;s off-topic message board to communicate and retrieve necessary information on today&#39;s tragic events. You have our support and prayers during this trying time. Please pass the link around to your friends."

News of the shootings first spread on the two boards around noon yesterday.

"Breaking news -- shooting on VT campus!" one user wrote.

Soon after, a number of bloggers reported the status of family and friends at Tech.

"All family members at VT accounted for. I&#39;m praying hard for others less fortunate," one said.

Some individuals also expressed relief upon learning that loved ones had not been victimized.

"Little bro is ok..... phew..... locked down in one of the dorms...," another wrote.

Many posted information reported on news broadcasts and gave their own reactions to the shootings. Soon, sports conversation had ceased altogether.

"Everyone is a Hokie today," another blogger wrote. One Virginia fan suggested that Virginia students wear maroon and orange in support of Tech students and families.

As the day progressed, the two sites were crowded with comments expressing the powerful emotion evoked across the country. Commentary touched on the political fallout of the killings, as many users posted messages conveying frustration with reporters and pundits who accused Tech administrators of mishandling the tragedy as it unfolded.

Fans from other schools have used the message boards as a platform to offer their prayers to Virginia Tech, while local communities of Hokies across the country announced planned vigils.

"What a horrendous day for not only Virginia Tech but the entire state," wrote one blogger on the Tech Sideline site. "You can count on prayers from Lynchburg from the Liberty University family for all of the victims, their families and friends."

Virginia students also posted messages relaying information about vigils to be held around Grounds this week.

Cavalier fans have put their rivalry aside and are calling themselves "brothers" with fellow students and alumni at Virginia Tech.

"Never thought I&#39;d say this, but Go Hokies," wrote one blogger on the Sabre board.

Virginia Tech has canceled all athletic activities today. Neither the University nor the ACC have announced any plans to cancel other athletic events.

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Salisbury: Hope for the Hokies

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April 20, 2007
By Jack Salisbury

The last two weeks have been rough on the world of sports. Meat-headed Don Imus, thinking he was being clever and funny, showed us that race and racism is still a paramount issue in today&#39;s America with his description of the Rutgers women&#39;s basketball team as "nappy-headed hos."

Then, NBA superstar and supposed role model Tim Duncan was challenged to a fight by veteran referee Joey Crawford. The scene had its comic elements to it, but it was still fairly disgusting with the raw angst and hate between the old Crawford and the robust Duncan.

In a time when nuclear weapons programs abound, people are killed over the outcomes of Little League games and enormously wealthy NBA players&#39; demand salary hikes citing the "need to feed their family," you sometimes have to wonder where our neurotic society is going.

And then Virginia Tech happened.

Virginia Tech.

The Hokies have been a mainstay of college athletics for years. Head football coach Frank Beamer built his program based on hard work and excellent special teams play.

By the time a kid named Michael Vick stepped onto the Blacksburg campus in the fall of 1998, Beamer&#39;s program had reached the status of national power.

Since then, Virginia Tech has always been a mainstay of college football, competing in the national championship and appearing at numerous New Year&#39;s Day bowl games.

Under Seth Greenberg, Tech&#39;s basketball program has also risen, beating both Duke and North Carolina this year in ACC play and making the NCAA Tournament as a five seed.

It has never been hard to root for the Hokies; they have up-and-coming programs. And after all, who can resist rooting for a Hokie?

Part of the allure in rooting for the Hokies was that you often didn&#39;t know what a Hokie was. For the record, Hokie is a fictional mascot masquerading itself as a maroon bird.

But there&#39;s even more reason to root for the Hokies now.

We all know about the tragedy that took place this Monday. I can&#39;t imagine what it&#39;s like to be a student at Virginia Tech right now, to know someone who was shot or injured, to be around the university or to even be an alumnus. The inexplicable tragedy has moved our nation, brought people together, but most of all, it&#39;s left us asking: Why?

There isn&#39;t an answer, though. That&#39;s the hardest part.

It&#39;s times like these when sports are therapeutic, taking people away from the harsh reality of the world we live in. A touchdown, last-second shot or an interception can make people forget, for just a moment, what has happened.

What I&#39;m saying is: Sports can be trivial, but for the most part, they&#39;re not.

A 45-yard touchdown run or a 50-yard field goal? Sure, they&#39;re pretty meaningless in the long run, but when you realize who they&#39;re affecting and how they&#39;re affecting them, they suddenly take on a whole new meaning.

After the city of New Orleans experienced the devastating disaster of Hurricane Katrina, it rallied around the hometown Saints. The Saints received coverage around the country for their heart-warming story; and unlike a lot of things dramatized in sports, the Saints&#39; story was truly heartwarming.

Drew Brees, Reggie Bush and Marques Colston rejuvenated a city, a region and a country by bringing the Saints to the doorstep of the Super Bowl. They understood the responsibility on their shoulders and acted accordingly, being active in their communities and setting new standards for what it meant to be role models.

And in the process, they showed that sports aren&#39;t just sports. Sports bring people together. They may not seem to have that same effect in a place like California, but trust me: If you go to Tuscaloosa, Chapel Hill, or even Blacksburg, sports are a huge thing. They&#39;re more than just a game.

I&#39;ll be rooting for the Hokies every chance I get next year. I can only hope that the city of Blacksburg, the state of Virginia and the whole country will rally around Virginia Tech and its athletic program in moving on from this senseless tragedy.

It was hard to not root for the Hokies before. Now? It&#39;s impossible.